History & Politics

Spying goes on everywhere, all the time, 24/7. But the way spying is treated—when it is discovered, when it is publicized, when spies are arrested, tried, and jailed—is highly variable, especially in the United States. The timing is almost never a matter of chance.

Two heads belonging to the same monster: This is the way a significant portion of the world saw America and Israel on September 11, 2001. On television that day, we watched people jump to their deaths to escape the flames engulfing the World Trade Center.

On the eve of Tisha b'Av, 2011, archeologists revealed artifacts newly unearthed from the great Jewish revolt against Rome (67–70 C.E.), including coins minted by the rebels and a stone incised with a sketch of the Temple menorah. But what is the menorah, and what does it symbolize?

With Turkish-Israel relations at a nadir, ties with Jordan practically on life support, the push for UN recognition of a Palestinian state, and the security threats stemming from Iran and its proxies, it's no wonder that Jerusalem has been considering taking exceptional steps to preserve its cold peace with Cairo.

It will come as a surprise to many that the current adamant Palestinian refusal to recognize Israel as a Jewish state was once American policy. An even greater surprise is that an American rabbi and the Jewish organization he headed played a major role in the government's articulation of that policy.

Few American public figures equal Glenn Beck in his ability to inspire loathing from his enemies and affection from his admirers. Beck was in Israel this past week for a series of public events—in effect, revival meetings. He called the tour "Restoring Courage."

Historians writing about Israel's 1948 fight for independence generally place heavy responsibility for the Palestinian Arab refugee problem on the Arab leaders who urged their people to flee Palestine temporarily until the Zionists were driven into the sea.

Osama bin Laden will forever be remembered spending his last days like a common shlub: sitting on the floor, wrapped in a blanket, remote control in hand, watching TV. Unlike most other shlubs, however, bin Laden just happened to be contemplating his own image on the boob tube.

Amid the flood of press comments about the "middle-class" protests that have been roiling the Israeli scene over the past weeks, a particularly cheerful note was struck by the American political philosopher Michael Walzer.

Should Jews Leave Britain?Douglas Murray, Spectator. As British society becomes increasingly anti-Zionist, Anglo-Jewry will have to dissociate from Israel to remain welcome in Britain. The process has already begun.

A Tale of Two PamphletsFred MacDowell, On the Main Line. As England debated readmitting Jews, an anonymous pamphlet blamed Jews for the deaths of Christian children. An answering pamphlet absolved the Jews—but blamed Catholic priests.

Good Mullah, Bad MullahMichael Segall, Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs. The mullahs trumpet their internal divisions, dangling the lure of compromise. But there will be no compromise as long as Iran thinks it is winning the contest for regional hegemony.

Hiding From JusticeFelix Bohr, Spiegel. A new book, asking how so many Nazi war criminals escaped to South America, finds collusion among Latin dictators, French former collaborators—and West German officials.

Budget-Balancing, Roman-Style, Bible History Daily. The Emperor Vespasian took office amid a fiscal deficit. But plunder from the Jewish Revolt not only filled the budget hole but financed the construction of the Colosseum.

The Original Jewish MothersLawrence Schiffman, LawrenceSchiffman.com. Contrary to claims that Ashkenazi Jews are descended from European converts, genetic analysis shows that 70 percent of them can be traced to four females from the Middle East.

Nazis Among UsEfraim Zuroff, Jerusalem Post. Every year the Simon Wiesenthal Center publishes a report on war criminals apprehended and at large. "It is still possible," says its director, "to bring the perpetrators to justice."

Metropolis of DeathRobert Eaglestone, Times Higher Education. Historian Otto Dov Kulka has always separated his research on the Holocaust from his own experience at Auschwitz. But his latest book combines the two—to extraordinary effect.

Is Hizballah History?Samuel Helfont, New Republic. A new history of Hizballah lays bare how the self-styled liberation movement has increasingly subjected Lebanon to Syrian and Iranian domination—and alienated its Sunni former allies.